William Mansfield Hubbard, longtime resident of Jericho, Vt., known as “Bill” to friends and colleagues and “Billy” to his wife and family, passed away on October 19, 2025, in Burlington, Vt. Bill is survived by his wife of 58 years, Janet Webster Hubbard; his daughters, Holly Donovan and Heidi (Geoffrey) Duke; his sister Karen (Bruce) Bonin; and his grandson, Jamie (Alexandria) Underhill.
Bill was born in Brattleboro, Vt., on July 25, 1946, the son of Paul and Agnes Hubbard. He graduated from Brattleboro Union High School, where he was active in the band and met his future wife, Janet. He attended Windham College in Putney prior to earning his bachelor’s degree at the University of Vermont and took courses toward his master’s degree at Saint Michael’s College.
Bill was predeceased by his parents, Paul and Agnes Hubbard of Merrimack, N.H.; his sister Patricia “Patty” Sullivan of Florida; and his very special kitty friend, Jazzy.
Bill worked as a special education teacher for 35 years at Lamoille Union High school before retiring in 2010. Over the course of his career, Bill developed and directed the Diversified Occupations program at Lamoille North Supervisory Union. Family dinners were often peppered with stories from his day at school and tales of coworkers to whom he was close.
Bill and Janet moved from Isham Street in Burlington to Poker Hill Road in Underhill after the birth of their first daughter. In 1972, Bill and his growing family moved to the Riverside area of Jericho, where he and his wife opened an antiques store, William Hubbard Antiques. Bill and Janet became homesteaders and for 20 years kept a herd of 60 sheep and an assortment of animals, including cows, chickens, pigs and horses, and maintained a large garden from which food was canned for winter.
Bill was up early caring for animals and tending the farm before driving to school for work and was often outside long after dark in the winter feeding and tending animals. His daughters have memories of their father making candles and jam at the holidays. Bill enjoyed woodworking, repairing everything from fences to broken chairs and building decks and doing home improvement projects. He offered clear instruction and a quiz on how to change the oil and tires of a car before he agreed to his children having their driver’s licenses. Though he was a man of few words, Bill was known for his offbeat sense of humor. He loved “Star Trek” reruns and listening to Simon & Garfunkel, Billy Joel, and the Beach Boys. As empty nesters, Bill enjoyed traveling to Maine with his wife. They often visited the coast during the summer.
A private graveside service will be held at a future date.
The family suggests that, in lieu of flowers, those who would like to offer a donation in Bill’s memory consider making a donation to the Underhill-Jericho Fire Department (P.O. Box 150, Underhill, VT 05489) or Essex Rescue (1 Education Dr., Essex Junction, VT 05452). Both organizations provided unwavering, committed support in Bill’s last days at home, for which the family is deeply appreciative.
Arrangements have been entrusted to the care of the Cremation Society of Chittenden County, a division of the Ready Family. To send online condolences, please visit cremationsocietycc.com.
This article appears in Oct 29 – Nov 4 2025.